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Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick apologized during a statement to the press at a hotel in Richmond, Virginia, August 27, 2007, after pleading guilty Monday in court, in a dog-fighting case almost certain to wreck his football career.
Acceptance of responsibility is one of the factors U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson will consider in handing down Vick's sentence Dec. 10. The federal sentencing guideline range is projected at a year to 18 months, but Hudson can impose up to the five-year maximum. The plea was accepted by Hudson, who asked: "Are you entering the plea of guilty to a conspiracy charge because you are in fact guilty?" Vick answered yes, and Hudson emphasized his broad latitude in sentencing.
Michael Vick apologized to all the people he lied to. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank. Coach Bobby Petrino. His teammates. "I was not honest and forthright in our discussions," the star quarterback said Monday, somber and deliberate and not speaking from notes. Then he apologized to all the young kids out there for his so called immature acts.
Vick wasn't specific about all the acts he was sorry for, but declared, “Dog-fighting is a terrible thing. I reject it.” Between apologies to everyone from the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to the Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank and to all the kids who used to look up to him, Vick declared that he's found Jesus and has turned his life over to God. “I was ashamed and totally disappointed in myself, to say the least. I want to apologize to all the young kids out there for my immature acts. What I did was very immature, so that means I need to grow up. I totally ask for forgiveness and understanding as I move forward to be a better Michael Vick the person, not the football player,” said Vick.
The Atlanta Falcons decided not to cut Vick so they're keeping him on the team. They announced in a statement: "We cannot tell you today that Michael is cut from the team. It may feel better emotionally, but it's not in the long term best interest of our franchise." The Falcons said they would not cut Vick immediately because of salary-cap issues. The team intends to pursue the $22 million in bonus money that he already received in a $130 million contract signed in 2004.
Vick, who took no questions after his first public statement about the dogfighting ring, said little in court. With his family members, including his brother and mother, watching from the front row of the packed courtroom, Vick stood flanked by two of his five lawyers and softly answered "Yes, sir" and "No, sir" to Hudson's questions.
Three Vick co-defendants who previously pleaded guilty said Vick bankrolled the enterprise, and two of them said Vick participated in executing dogs that were not vicious enough in testing. The three had agreed to testify against Vick had the case gone to trial.
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